So, what exactly is imposter syndrome and why do we experience it?

Imposter syndrome is described as the condition of feeling anxious, not experiencing success internally, despite objectively reaching successful milestones. This can lead to feelings of fraudulency and inadequacy, convincing yourself that one day you’ll walk into the office, and everyone will realise you don’t deserve to be there.

It won’t matter that externally you’re receiving praise and achieving in all your appraisals; you’ll persuade yourself that any achievements were down to timing and good luck – and eventually, everyone else will realise the same thing. Due to this, you’ll create impossible standards for you to reach, striving for perfection and likely burning yourself out in the process.

Interestingly, early research focused on accomplished, successful women who experienced imposter syndrome. More recently, it has become evident that anyone can feel this, at any point during their career.

For example:

• 80% of CEOs feel out of their depth in their role
• 62% of working adults have experienced imposter syndrome in the last 12 months
• Two-thirds of Britons say they have difficulty accepting compliments and praise
• Nearly half of students experience imposter syndrome

How can we stop feeling like an imposter, and recognise our achievements for what they are?

• First and foremost – acknowledge those feelings! It’s perfectly okay to feel like this, and it’s likely that your colleagues, friends, or your manager has experienced similar feelings.
• Talk about it– as the saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved! Talking through your feelings with someone you trust can provide you with some external context, helping to reduce the catastrophising feelings you might be experiencing.
• Build connections – this can help support others that are also feeling the same and ensures that we’re caring for our peers.

If you’re interested in learning more about this, take a look at:

• https://www.betterup.com/blog/what-is-imposter-syndrome-and-how-to-avoid-it
• https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/imposter-syndrome#takeaway
• https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stevenbartlett-123_lets-settle-a-myth-when-you-feel-like-activity-7072572992974639105-MfD7?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Below also shows some of the ways that we can work to overcome these feelings:

Take a look at our Insights Hub for a range of professional resources.

The post “What am I doing here?” – Imposter syndrome and how to overcome it appeared first on La Fosse.

Digital solutions

The recent transformation to hybrid and remote working that many companies have adopted has resulted in an increased demand and need for the implementation of more robust working solutions. Within a digital setting, there are far more cyber risks and a subsequent need for better IT tools to combat this. Many companies have faced challenges from operating digitally, especially in terms of being affected by cyber attacks, so investing in new technologies should be a priority. When discussing how to avoid falling victim to cyber attacks, the IT Pro Portal writes:

“Companies can look for intelligent cloud-based solutions that combine the benefits of streaming an online workplace effortlessly with complete trust in the solution to resolve exposure to hackers.”

These solutions can help businesses establish a more robust working environment and find solutions to any cyber issues they are presented with.

At La Fosse, we have already implemented change ourselves to help the transition to hybrid working run smoothly, and we understand the importance of creating a cyber-secure digital environment. We also have an extensive cyber security team who help our clients find the right employees to implement cloud-based solutions and infrastructure, helping them to build more robust working solutions for their business. Alongside this, our consultancy arm La Fosse Digital Outcomes offers various managed services which can help you implement further transformations within your business.

The digital divide

As well as cyber issues, moving to a more digital world of work has created a digital divide, particularly between generations, wherein many older users or employees are not as used to using the technology needed to work completely remotely. This limits their ability to carry out their job and so companies need to address this and make sure they are taking the necessary steps to ensure inclusivity and accessibility to all employees. In some cases, the digital divide forces employers to rethink the way they communicate. According to Insight,

“Due to COVID-19 precautions, many employers continue to limit or prohibit in-person workplace interactions among non-essential workers. For these organisations, digital channels have become the primary, if not the only, means of communication.”

This compounds the digital divide, often leaving many employees unhappy with their work life experience. Worryingly, “just 2 in 5 organisations assess overall satisfaction with communications, behaviour change and business outcomes.” This creates a divide not only between employees but between the employee and company itself, potentially resulting in a negative impact on overall business.

Wellbeing and culture

Luckily, there are ways to close the digital divide. In addition to properly training staff on new digital tools, technology and wellbeing go hand in hand to create a consistent and functioning workplace. Companies offering regular meetings, team calls and online events can increase wellbeing within the company and give employees a greater sense of belonging and inclusion.

Additionally, constant screen time and minimal face time when working from home can result in more stress and a poor work-life balance, negatively impacting wellbeing. With home working being a big part of ‘the new normal’, both employers and employees will need to learn to adapt. Although it can be overwhelming now, Kenneth Cukier, senior editor at The Economist, gives his view that,

“Over the next 10 years, the industry will get better at making it more subtle rather than distracting, and people will develop the social norms and personal behaviours to interact with digital technologies less frenetically.”

Building a desirable company culture is key to any business. Especially after COVID, it is more important than ever for attracting new talent and employees, standing out from other companies, and maintaining a happy workforce. According to research by Deloitte, 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe a distinct corporate culture is important to a business’ success. In addition to this, a recent Robert Half survey found that more than a third of workers would pass on the perfect job if the culture wasn’t a good match for them and over 90% of managers said a candidate’s fit with the organization is equal to or more important than their skills and experience.

A recent LinkedIn study also found that if you’re looking to positively impact hiring, talent management, or employee experience, you must provide them with an environment that gives them purpose. Speaking from their own analysis, LinkedIn reported:

“Our purpose-oriented employees have higher levels of engagement and fulfillment with their work. They outperform their peers in every indicator, including expected tenure and leadership competencies like self-advocacy and comfort with senior leadership.”

The executive chairman of LinkedIn states also that “companies that understand the increasing emphasis of purpose in today’s professional landscape improve their ability to attract such employees and also their ability to retain them for longer periods of time.” LinkedIn also found that companies who didn’t prioritise their company culture and were not ‘purpose-led’ saw a 42% drop in revenue compared to those who did.

At La Fosse, we take culture seriously. Our consultants regularly advise client on how to improve company culture and make their business more attractive to potential employees. But don’t just take our word for it – listening to our employees and constantly implementing changes throughout the years has resulted in us being named one of the ‘100 Best Small/Mid-Market Companies to Work For’ for 9 years running!

Most recently, we have hired our first Chief People Officer, Jackie Dane, who is in charge of maintaining and enhancing our company culture and looking after our people. In Jackie’s own words:

“Creating a culture where people can thrive is critical to business success. A healthy culture should make everyone feel a sense of belonging and identification with the organisation’s values, beliefs, and behaviours. Having that connection allows individuals to be themselves, feel psychologically secure and create better engagement and creativity in the workplace. It goes without saying that companies that harness diverse and inclusive environments drive innovation that’s reflective of the diverse views of the communities they serve.”

As well as listening closely to the needs of our employees through regular employee surveys, we also offer a range of wellbeing and mental health offerings – this goes hand in hand with culture, and we believe that services such as counselling, hypnotherapy, wellness coaching, and our volunteer mental health first aiders across the business help our employees to feel supported and able to bring their best selves to work.

Don’t forget, it’s still important to look after your health and wellbeing when you’re between jobs too. Check out this article for our top tips.

The post Preparing your business for the future of work appeared first on La Fosse.

Hi Jackie! Could you please give me a short intro into you and your role at La Fosse?

I am the CPO or Chief People Officer at La Fosse. So, my role here is to look after the people side of the business, in its simplest form how we attract, retain and develop top talent. But I think that’s quite a static definition. I believe to be totally effective, we need to explore how you get the best out of and engage people, how you enable individuals to bring their whole self to work, and how you get people to engage with the organisation’s strategy, purpose, and culture.

What is the difference between a CPO (Chief People Officer) and an HRD (HR Director) or CHRO (Chief Human Resources Officer)?

Chief Human Resource Officers and HR Directors will often focus on policy, process and tactical execution, whereas a Chief People Officer is more about people, culture and workplace strategies:

• How do you drive the business forward and enable individuals to engage with your purpose and culture?
• What are the strategic initiatives that are going to make you stand out in the market and drive people to you?
• How do you make sure the organisation is designed in a way that makes it able to operate effectively within an external environment that is constantly changing?
• How do you attract under represented individuals into a diverse workforce?
• How do you make everyone feel engaged and included?

Having worked in the HR industry for over 25 years, how have you seen the function evolve over time?

It’s quite interesting – I first started as a consultant in talent development, where the focus was on developing individuals and organisations to their full potential. Then I moved into ‘personnel’ as it was then (shows my age!) Personnel then was all about policies and procedures and tick sheets. When I joined Personnel, my background enabled me to look at issues through a consulting and development lens, which wasn’t the norm. I now think that HR and People teams are and have to be more consultative, to partner with the business to deliver strategy, and culture (the behaviours and values) that are instrumental to success.

I also think we have seen a much-needed shift to using data to drive decisions. This is critical as we must be able to demonstrate our ROI to the business.

What’s the most important role the People team has in business today?

Be custodians of the culture, engagement and inclusion. La Fosse in particular is a people-led business, so we need to drive initiatives that make people want to invest their career with us rather than elsewhere. Once they join, it’s about investing in their development, making them feel engaged and included.

In light of Mental Health Awareness Week, what advice or examples of best practice would you give to organisations who are looking to improve their mental health support function?

I think you’ve got to take a step back and ask yourself, ‘is mental health always going to be on our agenda?’ I think it absolutely is.

It’s also important to remember that it’s not just millennials or Gen Zs that suffer with their mental health, it can be anyone. Historically, individuals were better at hiding issues and that wasn’t healthy; the shift to recognising mental health conditions is good but I think the real challenge for employers is:

How do we destigmatise them, and how do we work to prevent them?

As well as other forms of depression and anxiety, stress can become distress, which can create bigger problems. Some of the initiatives we already offer at La Fosse are great – hypnotherapy, counselling, Employee Assistance Programme, and Mental Health First Aiders – but they all rely on someone saying, ‘I have a problem’, and knowing where to go. I think our Mental Health First Aiders have been really well received and can and have offered some really valuable support. What we need is to now get managers spotting stress, anxiety, or where individuals simply aren’t coping early, as well as making mental health part of everyday language in order to destigmatise it.

The next step will be to train everyone, especially managers, to recognise and to talk about mental health. This will help us work towards removing this stigma..

What is your future prediction for the HR/People function given the talent and tech trends that we’re already seeing today?

In today’s market, I think we’ve got to be more creative. We’ve got to accept that we’re never going to find candidates with the full skillset needed, so we need to understand what is coachable. I think you’ve got to hire on potential, which requires Talent Attraction and Talent Development to work alongside each other. I think we’ve done a great job of managing this at La Fosse – you might not find someone who has experience in the area you’re looking for, but they may have similar skills, capabilities, and potential that can be developed.

It’s also about the whole learning management system. It’s not just about offering modules or classroom-based learning, it’s about giving people training that they can access anywhere at a time that suites them, so that they can take responsibility for their own learning.

Moving further into the technology side, there are lots of great innovations coming through. There’s technology that helps you scan CVs, video-based application portals, and even bots that can look at people’s calendars and start scheduling interviews. A lot of what we do at the moment is very transactional, and I think technology like this will give People teams more time to focus on more ‘human’ activities instead of manual processes. There is always the risk that this might depersonalise processes, but only time will tell what balance will be struck – for now, recent advancements have come with a lot of benefits and really opened up what the future responsibilities of the People team might be.

Where to next?

​5 key components of an effective workplace mental health strategy

Mental Health: Why it’s better when we talk about it

Secret Leaders Live: Mental Health Among Tech Entrepreneurs

The post Interview with CPO Jackie Dane – Mental health in the workplace appeared first on La Fosse.

As our founder, Simon La Fosse, advocates;

“Today more than ever, mental health needs to be a priority for all leadership teams. My employees’ wellbeing is something I’ve always been very conscious of, and as a business, we’re constantly looking for new ways to support everyone at La Fosse in bringing their best selves to work. It’s an undisputed fact that when employees feel their mental health needs are being met, they are better placed to look after their customers – putting your people’s wellbeing first is not just the right thing to do, it’s better for business.”

In today’s hybrid working culture, it’s more important than ever for organisations to recognise the impact that mental health has on every aspect of life and start prioritising their employees’ wellbeing. We’ve compiled five key factors to include when developing or reviewing your mental health strategy, and some tips to help you get there.

One size doesn’t fit all

When developing your workplace mental health strategy, it’s important to remember that mental health looks different for everyone. To ensure inclusivity, your policy should reflect and address the needs of each individual’s needs within the business.

For some, this means communication – offering the opportunity to talk with a therapist or have a one-to-one session with someone within your HR team. For others, it may mean having a flexible time off policy so people can take a short break when they feel their mental health slipping.

We recommend using surveys, mental health risk assessments, employee focus groups and/or online tools to gain insight into your workforce’s needs before creating a plan from which to build your strategy. But initial research is not enough – to ensure you’re able to measure how well you’re catering to employees needs and alter plans accordingly, it’s highly beneficial to send a regular pulse survey to all employees.

Make mental health a part of your culture

Create, implement, and consciously communicate a benefits plan which promotes positive mental health and outlines the support available for those who need it. Without proper communication of your offering, some people will assume there is nothing in place and be less likely to reach out.

Fostering a culture of care is a huge priority for us at La Fosse. A few ways we promote a healthy work-life balance is through regular social activities, cultural trips to museums and exhibitions, and a range of internal clubs and networks. These activities really help people get away from their desks and have time to socialise and bond with people across the business.

As well as offering physical health benefits such as weekly massages and gym passes, we also address mental health directly through a range of externally provided partnerships. These include a BUPA Healthy Minds 24/7 telephone helpline, a qualified hypnotherapist, and Sanctus wellbeing coaches.

Ensure full backing and championing from leadership

For a mental health strategy to succeed, full leadership backing is essential – when leaders are openly discussing mental health, employees are more likely to feel comfortable doing the same. As well as training managers on how to start conversations on mental health and teaching them the right skills needed to deal with different situations that might arise within their teams, having regular check-ins between them and your HR function not only helps you spot gaps in your strategy, but also in turn provides further support to those managers.

Educate employees on how to understand and help each other

Although it is first and foremost the organisation’s responsibility to support its employees by training managers and making mental health information, tools, and support readily accessible to all employees, employee-led mental health schemes can also be beneficial. One such way that we have employed is through training up volunteer Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAs) with MHFA England – these volunteers act as a friendly face for a confidential chat about mental health and have been trained to spot early signs of distress, provide mental health ‘first aid’, and signpost people to the appropriate source of help and support.

Celebrate wins

Workload and workplace contribute massively to an individual’s mental state and wellbeing. As well as creating a stable, supportive environment for employees, it’s also important to recognise and celebrate success, ensuring people feel appreciated and motivated to keep working hard.

There are plenty of ways to do this, from sharing successes via email or in team meetings, to putting incentives in place across the business to reward employees based on performance. One successful way we have implemented this at La Fosse is through our weekly culture nominations where employees leave anonymous nominations for others in the company who have gone out of their way to offer their time, assistance, support or motivation. We then celebrate these at weekly company meetings where a winner is chosen to receive a small gift and a huge round of applause from the whole company.

There are plenty of ways to celebrate wins and show your appreciation for one another in order to promote a positive and happy workplace and workforce, finding what works best for your business is a great way to get started.

To summarise:

“The old ‘people officer’ HR regime operated in a world where if you had a problem, people would say ‘pull yourself together’ and keep going, whereas I think now, we’re seeing more mental health issues coming to the fore. Although the shift to recognising mental health conditions is good, I think the real challenge for employers is how do we destigmatise them, and how do we work to prevent them?”

Where to next?

If you liked this blog, why not check out:

Mental Health: Why it’s better when we talk about it

Maintaining Physical Health and Mental Wellbeing During Your Job Search

Secret Leaders Live: Mental Health Among Tech Entrepreneurs

The post 5 key components: effective workplace mental health strategy appeared first on La Fosse.

​About Andrew

Andrew is an experienced technology professional specialising in business change, particularly around digital, data, and cyber security. He currently runs his own advisory business in Newcastle, and is a non-executive director at Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. Andrew has previously worked as a senior civil servant within the UK Government, as well as having spent nearly a decade with leading telecoms providers O2 and Vodafone.

​What were your main drivers for leaving your job and life in London and moving back to the North East?

“It all stemmed from when my daughter was on her way, and it was a bit of a chain reaction – probably the biggest thing was that my partner and I both had the opportunity to take shared parental leave. Obviously, you have to be in quite a specific situation for that to work, and it turns out that only about 2% of fathers take it up, but we had the opportunity to each take six months off work so we decided we were going to do the parenting 50/50 right from the off.

“We needed to move house, and we both had the possibility of a career change, so it became an opportunity to do something big. We were house-hunting in London but at some point we thought, well, if we don’t do something now, then it’ll be 18 years until the next opportunity. So at that point, we started very tentatively thinking ‘well, what if we moved to Newcastle?’ and gathered some momentum around that. We felt we were able to do something more flexible because we had the confidence from the careers and networks we’d built up.”

How long did it take you to fully settle into your new location?

“When you go to a place with a strong identity that’s a bit further away from London, it takes some time to understand that deeper level; who the useful connections and interesting people are. I knew the North East well and I’d been back a lot, but I was 20 years out of date work-wise, so I didn’t know anybody or any of the interesting things that were going on. It took six months to a year – a lot of coffee chats, online research and seeking people out on Twitter – to get back in sync and feel a bit more tuned in.

“I was quite surprised at just how much time people had for me. People were really welcoming and took the time to listen, understand, think about other people I should meet and genuinely give warm intros. They also made the effort to get to know some real-life things as well, and might pop up months later saying ‘I think you should meet this person’. I knew there was a friendlier and less transactional business culture here, but it was still a nice surprise.”

What do you believe are the three main challenges when moving to a new location, especially when leaving London?

1. Unfamiliarity – “Take the time to learn how things are going to work in your new location – give it a chance. If you’ve travelled and worked in many different places then you’ll already have a sense of how long you’ll need to get your head around a new location.”
2. Network – “Getting to know people and finding like-minded people is standard stuff, but it becomes especially important when you’re in a new place.”
3. Lifestyle – “There are a lot of things that you miss when you move out of a big city like London: the diversity, food, culture… most places can’t match that. Newcastle does have a thriving food scene (it’s not all just Greggs sausage rolls) but there used to be more interesting restaurants on my street in London than there are in the whole of Newcastle!”

“The real key point is that there’s a trade-off in all of this – there are a lot of pros in going somewhere where you’ve got more space, where you’re happier that it’s a nice place for your family to grow up, and the pace of life is a bit less frenetic. And there are cons too, for example, the market for your skills and experience is so much smaller.

“But as part of the balancing act, you can achieve a better quality of life while earning less – if you can make the trade-offs work for you. It’s a very personal choice on the lifestyle, just something to go into with your eyes open.”

What challenges do you see for people working in technology outside of London?

“This is the thing that worries me the most. The challenge with having a tech job in Newcastle is that if you want to work on something large-scale, that’s very cutting edge and globally interesting, where you’re surrounded by brilliant leaders you can learn from, there aren’t so many opportunities to do that. Even as a student, I could still see that I just wasn’t going to get what I wanted in the North East, although things are definitely improving.”

Population size

“Something that’s a real concern to me is whether people are getting the right guidance and mentorship as they move up.

“In any smaller region, you’ll meet people who have stayed in one place all their lives and have floated to the top in their organisations where you can see they haven’t been exposed to working in different cultures and more competitive, challenging environments. There are some brilliant technology leaders in the North East, but it’s only a handful of people, compared to the hundreds at hand on the London scene who are helping develop the next generation of leaders.”

The job pyramid isn’t the right shape yet

“There’s a huge skills shortage in terms of unfilled vacancies. Our local universities are generating loads of great technical graduates but a lot of them then have to move away to get a job, so we’re not getting people in at the bottom of pyramid.

“One of the big dilemmas faced by younger people working in tech outside of a big hub like London is that you need to decide if you want to do a stint elsewhere to get the skills, experience and network that you can bring back with you. A lot of people who haven’t done this don’t know what they don’t know – you work harder but you come back having accelerated your career.

“Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and Edinburgh are catching up with London, but that then causes salary inflation and churn in those places – the market gets quite heated and can businesses off from starting offices there.

“From a candidate point of view, you need to be ready to ride the wave and be conscious of where different places are in the cycle.”

How have you kept in touch with your London network?

“I deliberately set up reasons for me to be in London every few weeks – it was a great way to fit people in as a break from my work trip and catch up with friends and ex-colleagues. I had loads of friends and colleagues in London that I only used to see quite infrequently anyway, so this hasn’t really changed much.

“Like everyone this year I’ve done a lot of keeping in touch through phone chats or video calls. When you don’t have to travel, you can definitely be more flexible and fit in more each day.”

How did you establish a new network and find job opportunities when you moved back to the North East?

“I connected with several of the local networking groups when I moved, and in the end volunteered for Dynamo, a local not-for-profit with a community of like-minded people on a mission to grow the North East tech economy. The group has representation from 150 businesses, including the local universities, and it’s more focussed on the enterprise end of the tech scene. There are quite a few local networks that are good at scooping up new people so I found that was a really good way to get introduced.

“I did some informal pro-bono mentoring for a couple of local tech start-ups as well. A lot of tech start-ups struggle with the enterprise sales – they’ve got good product ideas but find big organisations very difficult to sell into.”

What positive consequences came from moving out of London?

“I’m definitely sleeping better and feel healthier! We might have found it a bit too quiet at first, but I think all of the things we were hoping for in moving have come to pass. I’m a city person at heart so it’s nice to be somewhere that’s still a ‘proper city’ but is also less dense than the South East. And our daughter loves going to the beautiful local beaches, even when it’s freezing.

“Another good thing you really notice is spending much less time on the daily commute, which really helps shift the balance of when you work.

“It became obvious to me that there aren’t so many people turn up with experience and willingness to get involved, and that’s been a door-opener. What I hadn’t noticed so much when I was working inside Government is that a lot of data analytics and cyber security work we were doing was really cutting edge and way ahead of what most of the private sector was doing. Coming back to somewhere that’s a little bit off the pace, I have to be careful not to rely on that background knowledge too much as the context is different, but there’s a real benefit in having seen it before and having the knowledge that some others in the room haven’t yet built up.

“An unintended positive consequence from creating more flexibility for myself is being able to take on a non-exec role at my local NHS trust, which is making a big investment in digital over the next few years. It’s been a good way of staying in touch with doing some really interesting public service technology work, which I love. And something that I’ve really missed being an independent consultant is being part of a bigger team with a shared purpose, so it has really filled in that gap for me.”

​What three pieces of advice would you offer to someone either currently moving or thinking about it?

1. Do your research but be flexible – “Understand that you can’t plan out everything, but you don’t want to kick yourself for some obvious differences you should have spotted. Making the move is a bit like making a digital product really – you’ll set out in a direction, but you need to be prepared to test, learn and evolve.”
2. Career path – “Think about what the next job is after you move. There are probably more opportunities than there used to be to do something in a different way, so whether you’re moving for you or your partner’s job, be flexible and opportunistic – it might just be a chance for a path you hadn’t previously considered. You can create your own opportunities, especially when you’re bringing skills and experience that many people don’t have.”
3. Trade-offs – “My biggest piece of advice is to weigh up the pros and cons and figure out how they’ll work for you and the different aspects of your life – your friends, family, and your priorities.”

What advice would you give to candidates applying for roles outside of London during this time?

“Don’t hang about! There’s loads of rewarding work going on and progressive companies are hiring, so be open to employers that you might not have considered before. Every organisation is reconsidering the remote/office balance, so this is opening up new possibilities.

“Also, consider the public sector – there’s lots of interesting work going on all over the country, whether that’s in the central government hubs, the health system, or local authorities – this is a really great way for technologists to do something that genuinely impacts on people’s lives.”

As a technology leader, do you have any advice for London-based managers who have begun hiring and onboarding remote workers based outside of London?

“Remote working means there are now many candidates outside your usual catchment area that have the skills you need and wouldn’t normally have access to – and they may be hungry to change job as well, so take advantage of this opportunity. People outside of London also tend to have more moderate salary expectations due to the lower cost of living, so it’s worth considering even if you would’ve ruled it out before.

“There’s also something to be said about onboarding. Many organisations have been successfully onboarding remotely, so it can be done, but you have to make the effort and take care about doing it well. It’s easier for modern businesses with good collaboration tools, but it doesn’t happen by accident so it’s something to pay attention to.

“Now more than ever, there’s rightly a big focus on health and wellbeing – lots of people are getting a bit frazzled from working at home, and some are desperate to get back to the office, while others always hated the traditional office environment. So, how do you look after people as individuals? I see it as a company culture thing – if you’re a micromanager, it’s time to stop doing that! Everyone’s having ups and downs, so being flexible and trusting people is more important than ever.

“There’s really a challenge to technology leaders here – we’ve figured out that we can make remote working work, and recruit people who are based further away, but how are we going to develop these people and help them grow? We learn by watching and copying people around us, but how do we as leaders expose the next generation to this now instead of just leaving them being good at what they’re good at? I don’t think there are obvious answers, and it’s going to be a huge challenge for managers.”

The post Thinking of leaving London? We spoke to tech leader Andrew Besford about his experience appeared first on La Fosse.

Unfortunately, this is just as poignant today in the wake of the current pandemic. Uncertainty and a competitive landscape undoubtedly add to this angst, so it’s understandable that you might feel a loss of identity or sense of purpose at the moment, with no clear path of where to go next.

Now more than ever, it’s essential to take back control and make time for self-care as you navigate this stressful period. With this in mind, we’ve put together some points to remember whilst job searching – we hope you find them useful!

1. Structure your week and include time out

Job hunting 24/7 can be draining and demoralising. Figure out when you work best and set ‘work hours’ where you can be productive and focused, then plan out dedicated downtime around this to do activities you enjoy. It may be tempting to work overtime but this can actually be counterproductive and lead to burnout – give yourself a break and you’ll be better equipped to bounce back feeling refreshed and recharged.

2. Take care of your physical and mental health

As best-selling author and Buddhist teacher Sharon Salzberg asserts, “meditation trains the mind the way physical exercise strengthens the body.” Maintaining a balance of relaxation and exercise will play a big part in feeling positive and motivated, and in both cases, these activities don’t need to involve spending a lot of money. Cycling, running, walking, or even just stretching where you can is highly effective when used in combination with meditation (there are lots of great apps for this, including The Mindfulness App, Headspace and Calm). Diet also makes a difference – it’s easy to want to indulge in comfort food or alcohol but your body and brain will thank you for maintaining a healthy, balanced diet.

3. Reach out to others

You are not alone. Many people will have found themselves out of work in the past and it’s always surprising how many people are more than willing to help others, so reach out to every possible part of your network (however daunting it may be!) As soon as you strike up a few conversations, you might be surprised at how much people in your community understand what you’re going through and can offer support. And remember, if you are struggling, others around you may be too – assume the best in others and offer help and support in return where you can.

Here are some other practical job searching tips that you may find useful in your search!

4. Maintain perspective

The pandemic is not only affecting the lives of individuals, it’s also causing companies around the world to make difficult staffing decisions. Put simply, redundancy is not a reflection on your worth. It’s important to accept these feelings, recognise their validity, and know that you are not alone in feeling them. How ‘essential’ you are to the business is about your role, not you – don’t let it negatively impact the way you view yourself.

5. Learn from rejection

When you’re applying for multiple roles, hearing “no” will very likely be a part of the process, but don’t let it hold you back (as discouraging as it may be). Seek feedback where you can, and actively embrace what you receive as a learning opportunity to bring you closer to your end goal.

In the most recent instalment of the Mental Health Foundation’s survey on ‘Mental Health in the Pandemic’, one in five unemployed people reported experiencing suicidal thoughts and feelings. Sometimes, the right course of action for your personal wellbeing is to seek professional help, and that’s ok. If you are concerned about yourself or a loved one in these difficult times, these organisations and support groups are just a few options for receiving expert advice and support:

www.thecalmzone.net
www.mind.org.uk
www.samaritans.org

The post Maintaining physical health and mental well-being during your job search appeared first on La Fosse.

It was a pleasure to team up with The HR TECH Partnership to host “Exploring Wellness Through Technology and AI”- a panel event chaired by Sharon Sagoo, Director and Learning Solutions & Innovation at HR TECH partnership. Sharon was joined on the panel by; Dan McCormick, Group Digital Products and AI Director at Rentokil Initial; Rachel Duncan, UK & Ire HR Director at Experian; and Devyani Vaishampayan, Managing Partner and AI Investment & Innovation Expert at HR TECH Partnership and Ex-Chief HR Officer at Rolls Royce and Citigroup.

Below are a few of the event’s key takeaways.

Coronavirus has required overnight changes to wellbeing provision

Over the last few years, companies have seen the benefits of improving wellness in the workplace, specifically with regards to productivity and providing outstanding customer experience. However, the recent crisis has shone an even brighter spotlight on the importance of physical and mental wellbeing.

Both employees and businesses have had to make rapid changes to adapt to this “new normal”. As one panellist observed: “within the last 6 weeks, companies have had to go through digital journeys which normally take two years.” One key outcome is that employees have been instantly cut off from the typical corporate support system of onsite services around wellness and exercise.

HR departments and business leaders have therefore had to pivot to AI and technological solutions to ensure that employees have access to the range of support services they need during this challenging period. The stress placed upon employees by the pandemic mean it has never been more important for companies to trial and offer up a range of financial and wellbeing support.

Digital solutions to health and wellbeing challenges are “exploding”

There are a host of personal wellbeing apps on the market, ranging from well-known mindfulness applications like Headspace to mood-tracking services such as Moodflow. Moodflow helps individuals identify and track factors that affect mood on a daily basis by tracking variables such as where you were and who you were with so it can start to predict triggers for changes in mood.

One panellist suggested that this could be a useful tool in an HR department’s arsenal, as it would enable employees to better identify what it is about their working day that is dampening mood or augmenting stress. The company could then take this information and implement preventative solutions to improve employee mood and therefore boost productivity.

This fits into a broader trend towards business and personal health apps being amalgamated to safeguard the wellbeing and morale of employees. Of course, data privacy is a key concern for companies seeking to implement wellbeing applications which capture employee health information. Companies should be mindful of current regulations and closely follow how this issue evolves over the next 12-18 months.

Looking ahead, the panellists predicted that we will see significant shifts towards providing emotional support through conversational bots and avatars. Already in the market are message-based therapy services such as Spill, which uses AI to ask employees questions via Slack to identify who is in need of counselling support. Such services are likely to be a useful asset that should be on any HR managers radar.

Financial wellbeing and connectivity are being improved through AI & digital solutions

Many employees are going through a difficult time financially, and companies can be in no doubt about the connection between financial worries and mental wellbeing. Businesses can be proactive in exploring tooling to mitigate this. The panel touched on companies who are using tech coupled with new approaches to finance, like Salary Finance, whose financial wellbeing “hub” helps employees to manage debt, build a savings habit and access earned pay.

Coupled with financial anxieties are growing concerns around employee isolation. With many employees living alone at a time where social activities are stymied, the creation of virtual communities at work is vital. These communities can operate in messenger services or via regular informal video calls and emulate the “necessary and uplifting coffee machine conversations” that boost mood and have a positive impact on productivity.

Building an effective business case around tech & wellness

With squeezed budgets, getting your business case right for technological wellness solutions is essential. The number one priority is to articulate clearly the crucial nature of wellbeing to corporate strategy. As one panellist observed, “the current crisis gives us a burning platform to trial and test the solutions coming through for the greater good of the employees.”

Identifying a specific issue, such as employee burnout due to longer working days, and piloting a tech solution enables HR professionals bring concrete results and a proven hypothesis into a business case for sustained use. All the speakers suggested being agile and experimental – identifying a range of hypotheses and trialing various solutions without waiting for a ‘guaranteed’ method to come to you.

Wrapping up, panellists agreed that the current crisis made it all the more crucial to provide employees with the right tools and information to enable them to be their best selves in the ‘new workplace’.

Learn more about our business intelligence specialism.

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Here are a few of the ideas from the discussion:

Physical and mental well-being support

“Some businesses handle the practicalities of remote working – the Zoom calls, the messaging tools – better than others. But one thing that affects every business is the mental well-being of their team.”

In many ways, an employer’s duty to look after their employees has been re-emphasised by Covid-19. They have an obligation to create a working environment for their employees which allows them to be successful, irrespective of whether they’re in the office or at home. This isn’t just limited to WiFi Dongles and extra screens: the pandemic has brought conversations about mental health to the forefront.

The current crisis is taking a severe toll on mental health nationally, with nearly half of all adults suffering from related anxiety problems. Unfortunately, this coincides with a time when it is much harder for employers to keep tabs on how the team are feeling, having lost access to physical cues that denote someone is struggling.

Supporting people to create an environment they can perform well in is key, with certain companies setting aside budget not just for comfortable chairs but also for treats like Netflix and Disney+ subscriptions. The range of online events designed to support well-being stretches from online Yoga, to counselling, to non-working lunches to try and mitigate the social loss of the office.

One potential positive is how much of this new understanding we could take forward out of the pandemic to keep up the focus on well-being. As one attendee raised: “People will always face stress and difficulty in their lives which we should be attentive to. But this conversation has happened to be fast-tracked as right now we’re all facing the same one.”

Embracing disruption and freeing up headspace

“We’ve got to the point where, if someone’s kid comes onto a camera, we try and get them to join in the stand-up. They normally run off at that point.”

Most companies are currently embroiled in a debate about whether you can really mandate people to switch their cameras on in an online meeting. Whilst some simply see the webcam as an intrusion, many are embarrassed about the comings and goings of their home life happening behind them, particularly if they don’t have a private room to work in.

It’s important for leaders to let their teams know that these are ok: as strange as it is, having your meeting regularly interrupted by a six-year-old has become the new normal. It’s key to communicate that what might have been unprofessional before is no longer an issue. The goal is to free up team headspace by taking away these “little” worries, at a time when many are pre-occupied by much bigger ones.

Some leaders also see this as an opportunity to express their own vulnerability: whilst it’s crucial to acknowledge that everyone is facing different challenges, many difficulties about working at home – like someone making lunch in the background of your meeting – are shared experiences. Being able to share these with your team can be an equalising force.

Productivity and burnout

“What we should be looking for always is sustainable productivity, not burst productivity.”

Many companies are reporting a rise in productivity since lockdown, with several high-profile businesses suggesting that they might make the move permanently. However, these increases might be a false economy.

Some people are clearly responding to the lockdown by doubling down on work, perhaps as a technique to keep busy, a response to employment anxieties or in an effort to prove that they’re “really” doing work at home. Whatever the reason, this kind of “burst productivity” isn’t sustainable, and could ultimately lead to burnout. It’s notoriously hard to measure the productivity of engineering teams in any case, and given how different the environment we’re operating in at the moment is, established metrics are unlikely to transfer perfectly across.

If anything, the best way to respond to rises in productivity is to make sure people are having enough time off. Without a physical separation, many people are struggling to separate life and work, one manifestation of which is not taking breaks and working past the end of the working day. With holidays out of the question, many people are also unmotivated to take days off.

In response, some companies are trialling cues to signal the end of the working day: one leader said his team had five-minute “stand-downs” at 5pm, the main function of which is to stop people going back to their laptops. Others are encouraging people to take shorter, more frequent breaks if they don’t feel comfortable taking their full lunch hour, or incentivising people to take days off for mental health every three or four weeks.

The future of remote working?

“We did a survey and over 90% of my 400 employees want to continue working from home either the full week or some of the week.”

Notwithstanding reservations around productivity metrics, undoubtedly remote working has worked out well for some companies. Many employees have been only too happy to lose their commute and spend more time with their families. So how likely are we to see a permanent shift towards distributed teams?

Ultimately, only time will tell, though our panel tended to advise caution. Whatever successes companies may be having now, we mustn’t forget that we’re living in exceptional circumstances: a global pandemic is not necessarily a good litmus test for remote working. For one thing, most companies will maintain some kind of physical office, even if they try and cut costs by switching to a smaller one.

One of the biggest challenges of remote working is integrating remote and in-person employees, which isn’t a bridge most are having to cross at the moment. What’s more, at the moment people have very little to do, and so are tending to throw themselves into work – this is likely to change once normal life resumes.

However, certainly the whole situation has facilitated significant learning about what’s possible. As well as the mass-scale adoption of Zoom or Teams, common challenges around fluidity of communication have been tackled with new tools, like Miro and JamBoard, which facilitate virtual brainstorming. Important lessons have also been learnt around how important laptops and a cloud-native approach are to facilitate flexibility.

Even if companies intend most of their workers to go back to the office as soon as possible, most will have a newfound understanding of the experiences of their remote workers and better protocols in place for engaging them, having walked a mile in virtual shoes. These learnings, as well as those around well-being, mental health and employer duty, will hopefully give us all something positive to take out of this experience.

​If you found these insights beneficial, check out:

Leading in Lockdown

Top 5 Tips for Managing Remote Teams Effectively

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Take Julia*. Outwardly, Julia seemed to have it all. She had a high-powered job in La Fosse, a boyfriend and a busy social life. In fact, she was struggling. She wasn’t getting on with her boyfriend. Her father had dementia and, after a significant time in recruitment, she was starting to feel “stagnant. I was sleeping for about three hours a night. I didn’t see my life going forward.”

It was at that moment that an email was sent round all La Fosse workers about a meeting being given by Sanctus, an organisation offering mental health coaching in the workplace. So, says Julia, “I just went along.”

Talking about mental health can be hard at any time. Talking about mental health at work can, we know, feel almost impossible. Yet according to WHO figures most people spend a third of their adult lives at work. If you can’t talk honestly about the way you are feeling at work, that is a long time to pretend. That is why La Fosse has teamed up with Sanctus, who aim to “open up the conversation” about mental health in the workplace.

Speak out

Because, just because admitting to mental health difficulties at work can be hard, doesn’t mean that people don’t experience such difficulties. As Vic Lloyd, the Head of Operations of Sanctus puts it, “You can be a manager or a head of whatever but you’re also a human. Life doesn’t stop when you get to the doors of the office.”

Nevertheless, for many years there was – and in some places still is – a culture that said that it should. As Professor Dame Carol Black, principal of Newnham College of the University of Cambridge, who has advised the government on work and mental health, knows well. “Employers used to argue with me and say that all this belongs at home,” says Professor Black. “Of course, some struggles will indeed originate at home but, for sure they influence your ability to work.”

It’s good to talk

Being unhappy at work is not only bad for the employee in question – it is also bad for employers too. As Professor Black explains, “if you’re not in a place where you feel good and have a sense of wellbeing you won’t be productive. I think mental health, engagement and productivity are absolutely related.” Which means that promoting good mental health is not only the right thing to do for workers – it’s also good for their company.

For La Fosse – given that our whole mission has been based on treating people with care and respect – helping those in our company is not just the right thing to do, it’s a part of our mission statement. We hope to ensure that our employees can talk openly, work through challenges together, and share our successes and struggles alike.

A safe place to speak

Sanctus coaches come into offices, which means you can find, here at La Fosse, a “non-judgemental, open and safe space where you can bring your full self”. Professor Black thinks that being able to talk freely at your workplace is crucial. “If you have a good employer who you can talk to… then of course it will influence your mental health.”

It’s not just about getting employees to talk, either. Employers matter too. La Fosse’s Sanctus partnership was launched by two senior La Fosse leaders who shared their own mental health challenges. It was a personal and emotional meeting – and a powerful one. “Stigma is very much reduced if there is someone in the company who can talk openly about their own mental health,” says Professor Black. “It can make a huge difference.”

What is Sanctus coaching?

Sanctus coaches will discuss whatever you want – anything from relationship breakups to problems at work – but chiefly what they do is listen. As Vic puts it, “they are not there to give advice. They will ask a lot of powerful questions; be your compass and be your sounding board.”

This is exactly what Julia found. Looking back, she remembers that her coach didn’t say too much at their appointments. She would, “just sit there and listen to me talking.” Yet it worked. “I don’t know how she did it,” Julia says, “but at the end of the session I felt really positive.” After the first session, Julia decided to tackle her difficulties one at a time, beginning with work. Within three months “I’d tripled my salary.”

It wasn’t just Julia’s work that got better. She then started to address other areas of her life. Her coach asked her to visualise where she wanted to be in six months time. “I said lying on a beach, with a boyfriend….” And, with coaching “I made it come true.” Julia did indeed find herself lying on a beach, with a new boyfriend in under six months. Through the coaching she had focus, clarity and was happy with her job again. Now, she and her boyfriend are buying a house together.

Ask Julia whether Sanctus made a difference and she is in no doubt. The answer is a resounding yes. “I actually think it helped me change my life. I can’t speak highly enough about it.”

* Julia’s name has been changed

La Fosse is committed to supporting the mental wellbeing of our team.

We are publishing this simply because want to contribute to the wider conversation about mental health at work.

So we have included more material here: a link to Sanctus; and contact details for our CEO, if you are a business who wants to talk about what went well (and not so well) along the way.

Sanctus is a mental health organisation that works with businesses across the UK, and beyond, to give people the permission to talk about mental health and a safe space with a coach to have the conversation.

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